"...We need to find some ways to put Deep Ellum on people's radar screen again, to give them an incentive to come down, and getting rid of every parking meter would get them to come down to try it," the mayor says. "And then I thought we could turn the place on its head and have a kids' event, like an Eddie Coker concert and heavily promote it--have the Observer sponsor it," she says, laughing. "And then we could have another band, for older folks. Just have everything open with free lemonade. It would be a bizarre thing to do some kind of a child's free community event in a place people think is dangerous."

Um...oooookaaaaay...the above is a quote from Mayor Laura Miller taken from this week's Dallas Observer. Frank Campagna mentioned to me last weekend that the mayor had been hangin' in Deep Ellum on Friday night and lookie at all the great ideas she has to bring it back to life! Nuthin' beats a free glass of lemonade!...read the rest of Robert Wilonsky's article.

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I've openly admitted my adoration for pop stars, boy bands (Backstreet Boys rule!), reality teevee, Oprah and Iron Chef, even at the expensive of ruining my way cool reputation....ahem...yes, that last part was a joke...but I still cringe when talented folks like Jack Ingram start talking about hookin' up with Nashville and co-writing songs with the likes Toby Keith and recording songs written by those who write music specifically geared towards over-play on Clear Channel stations...but I also get wanting to make better bucks and move to the next level with your career...however it's more fun to bitch and moan about artists selling out...well just after they sell their soul to Nashville...

"...But that was only the beginning for Ingram. His first chart hit, "Wherever You Are," has just cracked the Top 20 and looks likely to hit Top 10. While "fuck Nashville" remains an all-too-common gripe on the Texas circuit, Ingram--who has already won and lost two Nashville record deals and would have every reason to gripe--is now swinging for the fence of country stardom."

"My only thought is, why not?" says Ingram, who's been on a promo tour the last five months and calls from an arena in Minneapolis, where he's meeting Nashville superstar Toby Keith to write songs together. "If those guys can have Top 10 hits, why not me? And if that guy's selling out American Airlines Center, I'm not going to sell myself short."

"But is he also selling his soul to get to the top? That's not the way Ingram sees it. "At some point I realized that it takes a lot of work to make a living at making music. And a little more work to not be bitching about what you didn't get. I'm putting in the work, and I'm putting in the miles, and I'm putting in the hours anyway. And so much energy in our world is spent going, 'They don't understand us. They don't get it.' Let's go fuckin' make them get it."

"To do so, Ingram has committed what some call the cardinal sin for singer-songwriters--covering songs written by others. But he thinks it's just giving the Nashville system something it can work with. "It's fun to preach to the choir. But man, come on!" Ingram says. "I respect my music, and I respect the music of this scene more than just to stay down here in Texas and shoot a finger at the world. And this stuff can be raised to another level...." Read the rest of Rob Patterson's piece.

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Sam Machkovech and his Odds & Ends reports that it's votin' time again for the Dallas Observer Music Awards...I can't believe it's already been a year...a couple of years ago...or just last year, I don't recall...they put the vote pretty much entirely in the hands of the fans. Yup, we get to nominate and we get to vote, so don't screw it up. The only thing is...and maybe you can help me out here...Sam writes, "Go to dallasobserver.com right now to fill out the nomination sheet, and bands, spread the word. You’ve only got two weeks to nominate, so don’t dilly-dally on the promotional side."...I'd love to get to it, but I've searched and searched and searched and cannot for the life of me find a link to nominate on the site. It is about 7 AM and I am still a little blurry-eyed, so perhaps I'm overlooking it...if I find out, I'll link to it later....Found it!

SaMach also writes a pretty humorous little segment on Christy Darlington. My "I love every band" reputation is legendary...but this dude Darlington...well...I dunno where to begin so I'll let Sam tell ya...

"...his latest 18-song album, Sex, saw independent release a month ago. The CD slipped past our radar, but e-mails pimping his new Web site didn’t—darlingtonsex.com is, without a doubt, the most self-indulgent tripe we’ve seen from local music in some time. (And for Dallas, that’s saying something!) Check out this unedited site intro, conveniently stuck below a photo of the man pouting like he’s about to cry:"

“I am a solo artist. i do anything i want to, live how i want to, and i make my own rules. i make my own traditions and march to my own beat.” A few lines later: “i am living, breathing art and expression. i am unique. i’m a contradiction in terms. i break down all social barriers and walls.”

"We must’ve missed the social commentary of Sex’s “Girls + Summer = Fun!...”

Uuuuh...[insert loud guffaw] Read it all

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The rest of this week's creamy goodness can be found here

Cindy now blogs at The Fine Line.